Tag Archives: juggler

“We’re fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance.” ~Japanese Proverb

Playing the Lord Mayor’s Fool at the Renaissance Faire!

Well, once again Spring has come early, and so too the spaghetti harvest in southern Europe (Italy, Spain and Switzerland). Thankfully, there is no threat to the harvest from the ravenous spaghetti weevil this year and this season’s spaghetti plants will soon be available for purchase on Amazon. Be sure to try your hand at “Homegrown Pasta!”

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Why is there an April Fools Day? Why is it on April 1st?

No one knows for sure.No, SERIOUSLY, No one knows for sure.
There are several theories:

On the Julian calendar, the one before the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in the 1500s (it was not adopted by England until 1752!), the start of the NEW YEAR was celebrated on April 1st. Something about the French peasants trying to fool friends and family into thinking April 1st was still New Year’s….. and people who still celebrated the old Julian New Year were called April Fools.

Jokes, hoaxes, pranks, practical jokes, sending people on “Fool’s errands” and other light hearted jests are now the order of the day!

Fool’s Guild King of the Fools Coronation Day Parade for Greg the Obscene Juggler in Agoura, California 1985

Geoffrey Chaucer’s “The Canterbury Tales” (1392) contains the first recorded association between April 1st and acts of foolishness. In medieval times, most of Europe celebrated on March 25, the Feast of Annunciation, but waited until April 1st to celebrate the beginning of the new year. April Fools Day might have something to do with the Vernal Equinox (March 20-21) and the coming of Spring, a time when nature fools man with changing weather…..

April 1st – “RABBIT! RABBIT!”

It might commemorate the fruitless biblical mission of The Rook (a European crow) in the Old Testament, sent out on a failed search for land from Noah’s ark:‘The mistake of Noah sending the dove out of the ark before the water had abated, on the first day of April, and to perpetuate the memory of this deliverance it was thought proper, whoever forgot so remarkable a circumstance, to punish them by sending them upon some sleeveless errand similar to that ineffectual message upon which the bird was sent by the patriarch’ – from the London Public Advertiser March 13, 1769

It might have something to do with Hilaria, the end-of-winter and the end of the Celtic New Year festival celebrated by the Romans. The Hilaria were ancient Roman religious festivals celebrated on the March equinox to honor Cybele, the mother of the G-ds, and to rejoice in the resurrection of Attis, the consort of Cybele. The Romans took this feast from the Greeks and public games, amusements and masquerades were allowed.

The Attis of Ostia

A life size statue of Attis was discovered at the archeological site of ancient Ostia, the principle port and harbor city of Rome, Italy, between the Tiber River and the Tyrrhenian Sea. The statue is a reclining Attis, after the emasculation. In his left hand is a shepherd’s crook, in his right hand is a pomegranate. He wears a pine garland with fruits, bronze rays of the sun, and on his Phrygian cap is a crescent moon. It was discovered in 1867 at the Campus of the Magna Mater together with other statues.

Another explanation of the origins of April Fools’ Day was provided by Joseph Boskin, a professor of history at Boston University. He explained that the practice began during the reign of Constantine, when a group of court jesters and fools told the Roman emperor that they could do a better job of running the empire. Constantine, amused, allowed a jester named Kugel to be king for one day. Kugel passed an edict calling for absurdity on that day, and the custom became an annual event. “In a way,” explained Prof. Boskin, “it was a very serious day. In those times fools were really wise men. It was the role of jesters to put things in perspective with humor.”

This explanation was brought to the public’s attention in an Associated Press article printed by many newspapers in 1983. There was only one catch: Prof. Boskin made the whole thing up. It took a couple of weeks for the AP to realize that they’d been victims of an April Fools’ joke themselves.

David and Bonnie at the Coronation of the King of Fools – Irwindale, CA

April 1st is SAINT STUPID’S DAY

“ALL HAIL ST. STUPID!”

The First Church of the Last Laugh“ALL HAIL ST. STUPID!”

April 1, 2017 – The Parade of Stupid in San Francisco!

As always, since the year 1979AD, the FIRST CHVRCH ofthe LAST LAVGH assembles for its one whole-y day and the ST. STUPID’S DAY PARADE each year at (The POINTY BUILDING UP COLUMBUS this year near) the EMBARCADERO PLAZA at the Foot O’Market @ Steuart in the Financial District of Downtown San Francisco on APRIL 1st at NOON (rain and/or shine). Bring socks for the sock exchange, pennies for “Thank The Bank Penny Toss” at the banker’s heart, dead lottery tickets for the blessing at the Federal Reserve (Support your Federal Reserve! Buy a lottery ticket TODAY!) 2017 is the 39th annual Parade! Visit the TOMB O STUPID, join in on the TIGHTENING OF THE LUG NUTZ and take a LEAP OF FAITH at the statue of the Barebutt Mechanics! Bring noise and music makers (drums, horns, bells, slapsticks, etc.) for the exorcism and a well dressed sense of absurdity. Attendance will be taken.

The Pledge (raise your left hand and cross your fingers):“i pledge allegiance, to the illusion,and to the pyramid scheme, for which it stands.One species, in denial, with error and excess, by all.”

Sign of Stupid! The Church in no way endorses, advocates or condones graffiti, or the making of your own St. Stupid stickers to place randomly all over the Earth, and in particular, inside the Gideon Bibles in motel rooms.

We found two boxes of old liquor from the old home bar in Storage. We dumped most of it but there were some nice unopened bottles of booze! We kept bottles of Bombay Dry Gin, Stolichnaya Vodka and Johnnie Walker Black Scotch Whisky. And we found a bottle of Porto from 1983 which we are looking forward to opening soon. We gifted the Johnnie Walker Black Scotch Whisky and then we opened the bottle and had a taste. Very smooth.

And just in case:
California Poison Control System (CPCS) toll-free EMERGENCY hotline: 1-800-222-1222http://www.calpoison.org

The Fools Guild was born in the late 1970s at the Renaissance Pleasure Faire, where the original culprits met while performing as jesters, jugglers, pass-the-hat-acts and mimes.

“The Fools Guild is a disorganization of individuals who identify with the artistic, spiritual or philosophical nature of The Fool. We are an amorphous mass of lively, spontaneous souls who meet throughout the year for unadulterated silliness. We produce three major theme parties a year: Halloween, New Year’s Eve, and the High Feast of April Fools Day. We also get together a lot in between…..We draw inspiration from the archetype of “The Fool”, keeping alive the virtues of playfulness and festivity as a source of creativity and personal fulfillment.” (from the Fools Guild website)

Fountain at the Four Seasons in Westlake Village, CA

MORE JOKERS:

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